Photographic film package and method of making the same

ABSTRACT

A lens-fitted photographic film package comprising a light-tight film casing having an exposure opening, a rolled film disposed on one side of the exposure opening in the light-tight casing, a removable light-tight container having a film winding spool therein disposed on the other side of the exposure opening in the light-tight film casing, and an externally operable film winding member for winding the rolled film around said film winding spool of the light-tight film container. The lens-fitted photographic film package is assembled by the steps of winding film withdrawn from a light-tight film container in a roll in a darkroom; loading the rolled film and the light-tight film container in separate respective receiving chambers formed in a main body section of the lens-fitted photographic film package; and fixing a back cover section to the main body section so as to assemble light-tightly the lens-fitted photographic film package.

This application is a division of application Ser. No. 087,388, filedAug. 20, 1987, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,884,087.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a lens-fitted photographic film packageand a method of making the same, and more particularly to a photographicfilm package in which a photographic film, a taking lens and an exposuremember, with their associated elements, are incorporated in alight-tight film casing as a unit, and a method of making the same.

A lens-fitted photographic film package can provide many opportunitiesfor enjoyment by readily taking pictures even when with no camera. Thislens-fitted photographic film package comprises a film casing fittedwith a taking lens, a simple exposure mechanism which includes a filmwinding mechanism and a shutter mechanism with their associated elementsincorporated in the film casing, and a 110-size cartridge filmpreviously packaged in the film casing, which can be sold whereverphotographic film is sold. The lens-fitted photographic film, after theexposure of all frames of the film, is forwarded to a photo shop orphoto laboratory without removing the film. There, the film package isopened and the exposed film is developed to make prints therefrom whilethe film package without the film is scrapped. The prints, together withthe developed film, are returned to the customer. Such a lens-fittedsingle-use film package makes it easy to take pictures because there isno need for film loading and unloading.

As is well known in the art, the 110-size film cartridge has a roll of110-size film strip contained light-tightly therein. The film packagecan be assembled by fitting the film cartridge to an exposure chamberformed inside the lens-fitted film casing. Due to the incorporation ofcartridge film, not only the assembly of the film package but also theremoval of the film cartridge from the film package can take place indaylight without fogging the film in the cartridge.

However, it is hard to make an enlarged print with a favorable imagequality from the 110-size film. For better image quality, it has beenproposed to provide a lens-fitted film package including a 135-size rollfilm whose image size is 36×24 mm. By incorporating the 135-size rollfilm contained in a film patrone defined by the InternationalOrganization for Standardization (ISO code 1007: 1979 edition) in such alens-fitted film package, the existing film processing systems can beutilized in their entireties for the lens-fitted film packages.

Such a 135-size lens-fitted film package is, however, quite hard to bemanufactured in a practical form because the film patrone has a singlefilm chamber, in contrast to the 110-size film cartridge which hasdouble film chambers.

A serious problem attending such a lens-fitted film package containing a135-size film in a patrone is that the exposed film will have to beremoved from the lens-fitted film package in a dark room because thefilm is withdrawn from the patrone one frame every exposure and, afterthe exposure of all frames of the film, completely withdrawn from thepatrone. As is well known, such a dark room film handing is quitetroublesome when a large number of films is to be processed at once.

If the film package is adapted to rewind the fully exposed film, and thefully withdrawn film is rewound into the patrone, the film can beremoved from the film package in daylight. However, rewinding theexposed film into the patrone requires the provision of a film rewindingmechanism which is attended with an increase in manufacturing cost.Moreover, it is necessary in the photo laboratory to rewind the exposedfilm before removing it from the film package. In view of such filmhandling, the film package containing the 135-size film, althoughpossible to be handled in a daylight room, decreases handlingefficiency.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide alens-fitted film package which makes it possible to remove easily anexposed film in daylight.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a method ofassembling a lens-fitted film package which makes it possible to removean exposed film in daylight.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To accomplish the above and other objects, the lens-fitted film packageaccording to the present invention comprises a light-tight film casinghaving an exposure opening, a rolled film disposed on one side of theexposure opening in the light-tight casing, a removable light-tight filmcontainer having a film winding spool therein disposed on the other sideof the exposure opening in said light-tight film casing, and anexternally operable film winding member for winding the rolled filmaround the film spool of the light-tight film container.

According to a feature of the present invention, the film of thelens-fitted film package is wound around the film spool in thelight-tight film container by one frame after every exposure. When theexposure of all frames of the film has been completed, the film is fullycontained in the light-tight film container. Therefore, the film can beremoved from the film package in daylight. Usually, the container isremoved by breaking the light-tight casing in a photo shop or a photolaboratory.

According to a preferred embodiment of the lens-fitted photographic filmpackage according to the present invention, a 35-mm size film patronealready commercially available is preferably used for the light-tightfilm container. Because the exposed film can be fully contained in thefilm patrone without any special winding or rewinding operation, thefilm with all frames exposed can be handled in the same manner as aconventional film patrone. Therefore, although the lens-fittedphotographic film package of this invention is based on a new conceptand provides a great convenience to the customers, the existing filmhandling and processing equipment can be used without any change ormodifications.

The lens-fitted photographic film package according to the presentinvention is assembled by the steps of winding a film withdrawn from alight-tight film container in a roll in a dark room; loading the rolledfilm and the light-tight film container in respective receiving chambersformed in a main body section of the lens-fitted photographic filmpackage; fitting a back cover section to the main body section so as toclose light-tightly the lens-fitted photographic film package; andsealing the lens-fitted photographic film package so that it cannot beinadvertently opened.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects and features of the present invention willbecome apparent from the following detailed description taken inconjunction with the preferred embodiments thereof with reference to theaccompanying drawings in which like parts are designated by likenumerals throughout the views of the drawings and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of the lens-fitted photographic filmpackage of one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the lens-fitted photographic filmpackage of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective rear view of the lens-fittedphotographic film package of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective rear view of the lens-fittedphotographic film package of a second embodiment of the presentinvention in which a film roll and a light-tight film container aresupported by a back cover section of the lens-fitted photographic filmpackage;

FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view, similar to FIG. 2, of the lens-fittedphotographic film package of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary cross-sectional illustration of a filmsupporting member of the lens-fitted photographic film package of FIG.4;

FIG. 7 is a front perspective view of the lens-fitted photographic filmpackage of a third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is an exploded front perspective view of the lens-fittedphotographic film package of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view of a shutter mechanismincorporated in the lens-fitted photographic film package of FIG. 7;

FIGS. 10(A) to (D) are explanatory views showing the operation of theshutter mechanism of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a plan view of an alternative form of the frame counter usedin cooperation with the shutter mechanism of FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a front perspective view of the lens-fitted photographic filmpackage of a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a cross sectional view of the lens-fitted photographic filmpackage of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is an elevational sectional view of the lens-fitted photographicfilm package of FIG. 12 viewed from the rear;

FIG. 15 is a plan view of a film loading device used for assembling thelens-fitted photographic film package of FIG. 1;

FIG. 16 is a front view of the film loading device of FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a side elevational view of the film loading device of FIG.15;

FIG. 18 is a perspective illustration showing a base plate on which thefilm loading device of FIG. 15 and a semi-assembly of the lens-fittedphotographic film package of FIG. 1 are placed;

FIG. 19 is a schematic illustration showing an automatic assembly linefor lens-fitted photographic film packages according to the invention;

FIG. 20 is a plan view showing a part of the automatic assembly line ofFIG. 19;

FIGS. 21 (A), (B) and (C) are perspective views showing various spoolshafts for use with the film loading device of FIG. 15; and

FIGS. 22 (A) and (B) are exploded perspective and cross-sectional views,respectively, showing a spool shaft with a sleeve for use with the filmloading device of FIG. 15.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to FIG. 1, shown therein is a lens-fitted photographicfilm package (which is hereinafter referred to as a film package forsimplicity) of a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.The film package 1 comprises a main front body section 2 and a backcover section 3 which forms a light-tight box-shaped film container. Themain front body section 2 is provided with a taking lens 4, a finderwindow 5, and a shutter actuating member 6 in its outer walls, andnecessary photographic mechanisms such as a shutter mechanism, a filmadvancing mechanism, and the like incorporated therein. The back coversection 3 is fixed to the main front body section 2 in any well knownmanner, for example by means of ultrasonic welding, so as not to beremoved by the user. The film package is preferably encased tightly inan outer casing or packaging (not shown) which is formed with severalopenings for exposing the taking lens 4, finder window 5, and shutteractuating member 6.

In FIG. 3 showing the film package disassembled into two sections, themain front body section 2 has an opening 2a extending between its backand bottom. The back cover section 3 is shaped to complementarily closethe opening 2a of the main front body section 2 so as to provide thelight-tight box-shaped film container. Inside the main front bodysection 2, there are a film roll receiving chamber 11 and a film patronereceiving chamber 12 disposed on opposite sides of an exposure frame 10.Projecting from the top wall of the film patrone receiving chamber 12 isa fork 14 which is rotatable by an external film advancing knob 8 in thecounterclockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 3. The exposure frame 10 isformed with film guiding and supporting tracks 15 on both sides thereof.In one of the tracks 15, there is a sprocket wheel 16 partiallyprojecting out of the surface.

When assembling the film package 1, a roll 23 of 135-size film 21, and afilm patrone 20 in which the film 21 is held at its end by a spool 28 inthe film patrone 20, are put in the receiving chambers 11, 12,respectively, prior to fixing together the two sections 2 and 3. Thisfilm 21 is of the type having 35 mm image frames, which is defined as135 film by ISO.

The above-described film loading operation is, in this embodiment,performed by the aid of a film loading jig which is shown by doubledotted lines in FIG. 3. In greater detail, the unexposed film 21 iswithdrawn from the film patrone 20 by and is wound around a cylindricalspool member 22 of the loading jig as a film roll 23 in manyconvolutions. At the same time, the film patrone 20 is held by agripping arm 25 of the loading jig and that part of the film extendingbetween the film roll 23 and the film patrone 20 is supported by a platemember 27 of the loading jig in such a way as to be slightly lifted intoa curve.

The film patrone 20 and the film 21 held by the loading jig can beinserted into the respective receiving chambers 11 and 12 throughrespective bottom openings 11a and 12a by moving the loading jig towardthe main front body section 2 until the top of the spool 28 (see FIG. 2)of the film patrone 20 is brought into engagement with the fork 14.During this film loading operation, since the part 26 of film 21 islifted, the perforations in the edge of the film 21 will not be caughtby the teeth of the sprocket wheel 16.

After having loaded the film roll 23 and the film patrone 20 in theabove-described manner, the gripping arm 25 unclamps the patrone 20 andthe cylindrical spool member 22 is resiliently deformed to remove thefilm 21. The deformation of the cylindrical spool member 22 is alloweddue to the provision of a slit 22a therein which receives one end of thefilm 21. Then the loading jig is returned while the film roll 23 and thefilm patrone 20 remain in the respective receiving chambers 11 and 12.Although the rolled film 23 is liable to loosen due to its own curlingeffect, the outermost convolution of the rolled film 23 is restricted bya curved wall of the film roll receiving chamber 11 to prevent the filmroll 23 from loosening excessively. Then the back cover section 3 iswelded to the main front body section 2.

Inside the back cover section 3, there is a back-up portion 30 shapedcomplementarily to the shape of the guide tracks 15 of the exposureframe 10 for pressing the film against the tracks 15 so as to place itin the focal plane of the taking lens 4. There is also a raised portion32 formed on the bottom of the back cover section 3 which closes theopening 11a of the film roll receiving chamber 11 and supports the loweredges of the convolutions of the rolled film 23. For economy, it ispreferable to use a plastic single lens for the taking lens 4. Althougha plastic single lens produces some distortion, the curved form of thetracks 15 helps reduce this distortion.

Film loading and film package assembly has to be done in the dark room.The film package of this embodiment can be assembled automatically withthe aid of a manipulator in cooperation with the above-described loadingjig, even in a dark room, because of the structural simplicity thereof.Therefore, the film package can be assembled at low cost.

Alternatively, the film patrone 20 and the film roll 23 may be loaded insuch a way as to wind the film 21 around the cylindrical spool member 22of the loading jig after the loading of the film patrone in thepatrone-receiving chamber 12. In this case, the film is wound whileraised at an angle between 30° and 45° with respect to the film rollreceiving chamber 11. After the film 21 is fully wound around thecylindrical spool member 22, the rolled film 23 is placed in the filmroll receiving chamber 11 and then the cylindrical spool member 22 isremoved.

In using the film package thus assembled, when the shutter actuatingmember 6 is operated, a shutter 35 is opened and closed so as to exposea frame of the film 21 placed over the exposure frame 10. After theexposure, the film advancing knob 8 is operated to rotate the fork 14,thereby rotating the spool 28 of the patrone 20 so as to wind the filmby one frame, namely to draw the exposed part of the film into thepatrone 20. At the same time, a new frame of the film 21 is advanced tothe exposure frame 10 while rotating the sprocket 16. When the sprocket16 makes a predetermined number of revolutions, the film advancing knob8 and the shutter 35 with its associated elements are self-cocked so asto set the film package for the next exposure.

As the exposure is repeated in the same manner as described above, thefilm 21 is progressively drawn into the patrone 20. After the exposureof all frames of the film 21, the film package is forwarded to aphoto-shop without removing the exposed film. There, the back coversection 3 is detached from the main front body 2 by the aid of, forexample, an expanding jig so as to remove the patrone containing theexposed film 21. The patrone 20 is handled in the same manner as isconventional for removing the exposed film and subjecting it to thenecessary processing for development and printing.

It is desirable to provide a tab 38 which can be pulled to tear along agroove 37 by which an openable part of the bottom of the back cover 3 isdefined. When the part defined by the groove 37 is torn off, an openingis provided through which the patrone 20 can be removed withoutdetaching the back cover section 3 from the main front body section 2.Thus forming an opening in the film package makes it impossible to reusethe film package. Therefore, it will be impossible to refill a new filminto the used film package container in order to reclaim a film packagefor reuse.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show another embodiment of the lens-fitted film packageaccording to the present invention. In this embodiment, the film patrone20 and the film roll 23 are supported by the back cover section 3 beforeassembling the film package 1. For supporting the film patrone 20 andthe film roll 23, a resiliently deformable retaining member 40 which ispreferably made of a leaf spring is attached to the raised portion 39 ofthe back cover section 2. The retaining member 40 is curvedcorrespondingly to the curved surface of the exposure frame 15 and hasupper and lower retaining arms 41 and 42 which extend laterally and aresubstantially semicircularly rounded. These arms 41 and 42 areresiliently bendable to hold the film patrone 20 and the film roll 23,respectively. The curved section of the retaining member 40 is partiallycut away at 40a for a purpose that will be explained.

When assembling the lens-fitted film package of this embodiment, atfirst the film is withdrawn from the film patrone 20 while winding thefilm in a roll 23. Then the patrone 20 and the film roll 23 are fittedin and retained by the rounded end portions 41 and 42 of the retainingmember 40. Since the film roll 23 tends to loosen, the outermostconvolution of the film roll 23 is brought into light contact with theinner surface of the rounded end portion 42 of the retaining member 40.The cut-away portion 40a allows the teeth of the sprocket wheel 16 toenter the perforations of the film 21.

After the completion of the insertion of the film patrone 20 and thefilm roll 23, the back cover section 3 is fixed to the main front bodysection 2 of the film package 1 in the same manner as in the previousembodiment.

As is seen clearly in FIG. 4, because the film roll 23 is held only atits top and bottom by the retaining arms 42, the friction force exertedon the outermost convolution of the film roller 23 is small. Due to thesmall friction force, the film can be smoothly withdrawn from the filmroll receiving chamber 11.

As is shown in FIG. 6, it is permissible to form film roll retaining armmember 45 integral with the raised portion 39 in place of theresiliently deformable member 40. In this case, it is preferable to formgrooves 46 in the inner surface of the retaining member 45 in order toreduce the friction between the outermost convolution of the film roll23 and the inner surface of the retaining member 45. The provision ofthe retaining member for holding the film patrone and the film roll onthe back cover section makes it quite easy to assemble the film packagein an automatic assembly line.

The lens-fitted film package thus assembled is used in the same manneras that of the previous embodiment.

Reference is now had to FIGS. 7 to 10 showing another preferredembodiment of the lens-fitted film package. The lens-fitted film package1 comprises a main body section 50, a back cover section 52, and a frontcover section 51 which are all made of plastic materials. These sectionsare assembled into a light-tight box-shaped film container. As will bedescribed in detail later, these sections are fixedly assembled afterhaving loaded the film patrone 20 and a film 21 into the main bodysection 50. Therefore, the film patrone 20 and the film 21 can by nomeans be removed by the user.

As is shown in FIG. 8, on a base plate 53 of the main body section 50,there are formed a patrone-receiving chamber 55 and a film rollreceiving chamber 56 spaced apart a predetermined distance from eachother. Each chamber 55, 56 is open at its bottom through an opening 55a,56a through which the patrone 20 or the film 21 is inserted therein.Upon loading film, the film 21 is withdrawn from the film patrone 20which is well known to those skilled in the art and already commerciallyavailable, and the withdrawn part of the film is wound in a film roll23. Then the film patrone 20 and the film roll 23 are loaded in the mainbody section 50 through the openings 55a and 56a. This loading operationis done in a dark room. It is to be noted that the film 21 may bewithdrawn from the film patrone before or after the loading of the filmpatrone 20 into the main body section 50.

Between the film patrone receiving and film roll receiving chambers 55and 56, there is a connecting section 57 in which an exposure frame isformed. All three sections 55, 56 and 57 are made as one body in agenerally rectangular frame 58. At the bottom of the frame 58, there areformed openings in alignment with the openings 55a and 56a of the filmpatrone and film roll receiving chambers 55 and 56. At the top of thefilm patrone receiving chamber 55, there is a fork (which is hidden inFIG. 8) similar to the fork 14 of FIG. 3, engageable with the spool 28of the film patrone 20. When the film advancing knob 60, to which thefork is secured, is rotated in a direction shown by an arrow in FIG. 8,the fork rotates the spool 28 of the patrone 20 so as to retract thefilm 21 into the film patrone 20. The periphery of the film advancingknob 60 is provided with teeth 60a which are engaged by a resilientlydeformable pawl 60b so as to prevent knob 60 from rotating in theclockwise direction.

In the main body section 50, there are also provided an exposure counter61, a ratchet 62, shutter actuating lever 63, shutter blades 64, drivingsprocket 65, and their associated elements by which a shutter mechanismis comprised.

Referring to FIG. 9 showing the shutter mechanism, a shutter actuatingmember 66 is formed integrally with a supporting plate 67 which ispivotally mounted on the front cover section 51 by a pivot 68 forpivotal movement. An operating rod 69 is fixed to supporting plate 67and extends rearwardly. The ratchet 62 is supported by the main bodysection 50 for pivotal movement and has a bent arm 62a to which a coilspring 72 is attached. By the spring 72, the ratchet 62 is forced in theclockwise direction as seen in FIGS. 9 and 10. The bent arm 62a of theratchet 62 at its lower end is engaged by the operating rod 69 of theplate 67 integral with the shutter actuating member 66. When the shutteractuating member 66 is depressed, the ratchet 62 is rotated in thecounterclockwise direction by the operating rod 69 against the action ofspring 72. The ratchet 62 has a hook 62b at the end of its arm whichengages the teeth 60a of the film advancing knob 60 so as to prevent thefilm advancing knob 60 from being rotated.

The film 21 is provided with perforations 21a, eight for each frame. Theperforations 21a are engaged by one or two of eight teeth of a drivensprocket wheel 65. Therefore, when the film 21 is advanced by one frame,the sprocket wheel 65 is driven to turn fully once. Coaxially with thedriven sprocket 65, there is provided a cam member 74 having a notch 74aon its outer periphery. The periphery of the cam member 74 is contactedby the hooked end 62c of one arm of the ratchet 62. The cam member 74 iscaused to rotate in the counterclockwise direction with the drivensprocket wheel 65 when the film 71 is advanced in a direction shown byan arrow in FIG. 9.

A shutter actuating lever 63 is supported for pivotal movement by themain body section 50 by means of a pivot 76. This shutter actuatinglever 63 is formed with a bent portion 63a to which one end 72b ofspring 72 is connected. Due to the provision of the coil spring 72, theshutter actuating lever 63 is urged to rotate in the counterclockwisedirection. As is shown in FIG. 8, the shutter actuating lever 63, andmore particularly an arm 63d thereon (FIG. 9), contacts a projection 62don the ratchet lever 62 to be maintained in the position shown in FIG.10(A) against the action of coil spring 72. The shutter actuating lever63 is also formed with an L-shaped bent portion 63b which extendsforward to contact the shutter blade 64 as shown in FIG. 8.

The shutter blade 64 is supported by the main body section 50 forpivotal movement but is urged by a spring 64b toward its rest positionshown in FIG. 8. When the shutter blade 64 is in this rest position, theshutter blade 64 closes an exposure aperture 78 so as to block light.When the projection 62d of the ratchet lever 62 releases the shutteractuating lever 63 as is shown in FIG. 10(B), the shutter actuatinglever 63 is caused to turn in the counterclockwise direction by theforce of the spring 72, so as to hit the projection 64c of the shutterblade 64. Consequently, the shutter blade 64 turns in the clockwisedirection to open the exposure aperture 78 while charging the spring64b. When the L-shaped bent portion 63b of the shutter actuating lever63 rides over the projection 64c of the shutter blade 64, the shutterblade 64 returns to its rest position by the force of the spring 64b toclose the exposure aperture 78.

The driven sprocket wheel 65 is provided coaxially integrally with a cammember 80 (FIG. 9) for setting the shutter mechanism. At the completionof the opening and closing of the shutter blade 64, the projection 63cof the shutter actuating lever 63 falls into a recess 80a of the cammember 80. Because the cam member 80 is integral with the drivensprocket wheel 65, the cam member 80 turns in the counterclockwisedirection as seen in FIG. 9 as a result of the advance of the film 21.This turning of the cam member 80 causes the shutter actuating lever 63to turn also in the counterclockwise direction and so to return to itsinitial position.

The driven sprocket wheel 65 is further provided coaxially with a member82 having a single notch, which is engaged by any one of teeth 61a ofthe exposure counter 61. Therefore, when the driven sprocket wheel 65makes one complete revolution, the single-notched member 82 rotates onecomplete revolution, turning the exposure counter by one tooth.Correspondingly to the angular positions of the teeth 61a of theexposure counter 61, there are provided numerals on counter 61 (FIG. 11)to indicate the number of exposed or unexposed frames. The marks, suchas numerals, are viewed through a window 83 formed in the front coversection 51.

As is shown in FIG. 8, in front of the shutter blade 64, there is a lenssupporting board 85 in which an opening 85a is formed to hold a plasticlens 86 as the taking lens. The lens supporting board 85 is so placed asto align the plastic lens 86 with the exposure aperture 78.

In the top wall of the front cover section 51 is a square opening 87which receives therein the shutter actuating member 66 with its topsurface flush with, or even below, the outer surface of the top wall ofthe front cover section 51. In the front wall of the front cover section51, there are a tunnel-like viewfinder 88, a circular opening 89, andsmall square openings 90. The opening 89 is formed coaxially with theoptical axis of the lens 86. The small openings 90 are locatedcorrespondingly to fixing lugs 91 projecting from the main body section50 by which the two sections 50 and 51 are temporarily fixed together.

The back cover section 52 (FIG. 8) comprises a back wall 93 and a bottomwall and has a substantially L-shaped cross section. In the back wall 93is an opening 95 in alignment with the tunnel-like viewfinder 88 throughwhich an object is viewed. There is also formed a rectangular opening 96in the back wall 63 which receives therein the film advancing knob 60with its outer periphery flush with, or even below, the outer surface ofthe back wall 93 of the back cover section 52. Inside the back wall 93of the back cover section 52 is a raised portion 98 having a curvedsurface for supporting the film 21 thereon and guiding it therealong.

The back cover section is fitted to the main body section 50 in such away as to position the bottom plate 94 under the base plate 53 of themain body section 50 so as to cover the openings 55a and 56a of the filmpatrone and film roll receiving chambers 55 and 56. Due to theconstruction of the film package 1, by fixing the back cover 52 to themain body portion 50 in which the film patrone 20 and the film roll 23have been previously loaded, the film 21 is contained light-tightly.Thereafter, the fixing of the front cover section 51 is effected, evenin daylight, by welding side edges 52a and 52b of the back cover sectionto a corresponding recessed portion of the front cover section 51.

The lens-fitted film package 1 is operated by depressing the shutteractuating member 66. Upon the depression of the shutter actuating member66 from its initial position shown in FIG. 10(A), the ratchet lever 62is caused by the operating rod 69 to turn in the counterclockwisedirection. As is shown in FIG. 10(B), the turning of the ratchet lever62 releases and allows the shutter actuating lever 63 to turn in thecounterclockwise direction under the force of the spring 72. As aconsequence, the shutter blade 64 is opened and closed so as to exposethe frame of the film 21 positioned in the exposure frame.

At the completion of the opening and closing of the shutter blade 64,the hooked end 62c of the ratchet lever 62 leaves the recess 74a of thecam member 74. As a result, the projection 63d of the shutter actuatinglever 63 engages the projection 62d of the ratchet lever 62 to maintainthe ratchet lever in the engaged position shown in FIG. 10(C). On theother hand, the hook 62b of the ratchet lever 62 escapes from the tooth60a of the film advancing knob 60 so as to allow it to be rotated inorder to advance the film 21 by one frame.

When rotating the film advancing knob 60 in the clockwise direction asviewed in FIG. 9 after each exposure of the film 21, the fork secured tothe film advancing knob 60 rotates the spool 28 of the film patrone 20to take up the film 21 in the film patrone 20. Due to the film advance,the driven sprocket wheel 65 is turned fully once in thecounterclockwise direction so as to rotate the cam members 74 and 80,and the single-notched member 82. The cam member 80 moves the hooked end63c of the shutter actuating lever 63 so as to rotate the shutteractuating lever 63 in the clockwise direction, thereby disengaging theprojection 63d of the shutter actuating lever 63 from the projection 62dof the ratchet lever 62 so as to allow the ratchet lever 62 to rotate inthe clockwise direction under the force of spring 72 as is shown in FIG.10(D). Then the projection 62d of the ratchet lever 62 will be engagedby the projection 63d of the shutter actuating lever 63 from the righthand side of the projection 63d as viewed in FIG. 10. On the other hand,the hooked end 62c of the ratchet lever 62 is brought into contact withthe outer periphery of the cam member 74.

Upon the driven sprocket wheel 65 turning fully once, the hooked end 62cof the ratchet lever 62 falls into the recess 74a of the cam member 74,and the ratchet lever 62 further turns slightly in the clockwisedirection. As a result, the hook 62b of the ratchet lever 62 is broughtinto engagement with the tooth 60a of the film advancing knob 60 so asto prevent the film advancing knob 60 and the driven sprocket wheel 65from further rotating while the cam member 74 is prevented formrotating. In this way, the one-frame film advance is completed; and theshutter actuating lever 63 is returned to its initial position shown inFIG. 10(A) wherein the shutter actuating lever 63 is engaged by theprojection 62d of the ratchet lever 62 to be prevented from furtherrotation in the counterclockwise direction. At this time, thesingle-notched member 82 moves the exposure counter 61 to change theindicated number by one.

On the under surface of the exposure counter 61 is a cam member 61b(shown in FIG. 9) formed integrally therewith. This cam member 61b isbrought into engagement with an upwardly bent end portion 62e of theratchet lever 62 to rotate the ratchet lever 62 in the counterclockwisedirection. Simultaneously, a recess 61a formed in the outer periphery ofthe exposure counter 61 is moved to a position wherein the notch of thesingle-notched member 82 is engageable with the teeth of the exposurecounter 61. When the ratchet lever 62 is turned counterclockwise, thehooked end 62c of the ratchet lever 62 is disengaged from the peripheralrecess 74a of the cam member 74 to allow the driven sprocket wheel 65 torotate. In this state, as the single-notched member enters the recess61c of the exposure counter wheel 61, the exposure counter wheel 61 isnot rotated even though the sprocket wheel 65 is rotated. Therefore, thefilm advancing know can be rotated without any interruption to wind thefilm 21 into the film patrone 20. As described above, the film 21 iscompletely wound in the film patrone 20 after the exposure of all framesof the film 21, and the unloading of the film patrone 20 containing theexposed film is done quite easily in a photo shop.

The exposure counter 61 has another indication shown at T in FIG. 11.This indication comprises several dots the number of which correspondsto a number, for example two or three, of possible frames of the leaderportion of the film 21 which is subjected to blind exposure. Due to theblind exposure indication, it is possible to test the operation of theshutter and film advancing mechanisms after the assembly of thelens-fitted film package.

With the self-cocking mechanism described above, although the film iswound by a very simple mechanism in that the film advancing knob 60 isdirectly connected with the spool 28 of the film patrone 20, the filmadvancing knob 60 and the driven sprocket wheel 65 are prevented frombeing further rotated by a single member, namely the ratchet lever 62,every time the film 21 is wound by one frame. Therefore, the lens-fittedfilm package can have a reliable one-frame film advancing mechanismwhile having a simple shutter mechanism.

FIGS. 12 and 14 show still another preferred embodiment of thelens-fitted film package according to the present invention. In thisembodiment, a film advancing knob 103 is provided at the bottom of afront wall of a main body section 100 which is formed with an opening102 for receiving a taking lens 101 therein. Behind the lens opening 102and a viewfinder window 104 are bores 105 and 106 with grooves formed onthe inner surface thereof for preventing diffused reflected light fromentering through the openings.

As is shown in FIG. 13, behind the taking lens 101 is a shuttermechanism 107 supported by an exposure frame 108. On the right hand sideof the exposure frame 108 as viewed from the front of the main bodysection 100 of the film package, there is a film-container-receivingchamber 111 for receiving a light-tight film container 110. On the otherhand, on the left hand side of the exposure frame 108, there is afilm-receiving chamber 112. In the film-receiving chamber 112 is a spoolshaft 113 supported for rotation. The film which is not yet exposed iswound up around the spool shaft 113. The leading end 21a of the film 21is attached to a spool 114 supported by the film container 110 forrotation. The part of the film 21 between the film-receiving chamber 112and the film container 110 in the film-container-receiving chamber 111passes behind the exposure frame 108.

In FIG. 14, showing the main body section 100 as viewed from the rearthereof, the spool 114 of the film container 110 is engaged by a fork116 projecting partially from the bottom of the film-container-receivingchamber 111. The fork 116 is formed integrally with a shaft of a gear115 which is rotated with a film advancing knob 103 through an idlergear 117. Upon rotating the film advancing knob 103, the film 21 iswound around the spool 114. The spool shaft 113 disposed in thefilm-receiving chamber 112 projects outside the film-receiving chamber112 but is spaced from the bottom of the main body section 100.

At the bottom of the spool shaft 113 is formed a groove 113a which canbe engaged by the tip of a screw driver in order to be rotated to windthe film 21 therearound. The groove 113a may have a particular shapesuitable for a special tool rather than usual screw drivers in order toprevent the winding or rewinding of the film 21 by users.

According to the above-described construction, the lens-fitted filmpackage is assembled in the following way. At first the film container110 with the leading portion of the film 21 withdrawn and the trailingend fixed to the spool 114 is loaded in the film-container-receivingchamber 111 of the main body section 100. After fixing the end of theleading portion of the film 21 to the spool shaft 113 of thefilm-receiving chamber 112, the back cover section 119 is fixed to themain body section 100 so as to form a light-tight rectangular box-shapedfilm package. Then a screw driver, for example, is inserted through anopening formed in the bottom wall of the main body section 100 to engagewith the groove 113a of the spool shaft 113, thereby turning the spoolshaft 113 in the counterclockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 13 inorder to wind up the film 21 around the spool 113 in the film-receivingchamber 112. This film winding operation can be performed in daylightbecause the film package is maintained light-tight.

In using the lens-fitted film package thus comprised, after operatingthe shutter actuating member 120 to make an exposure, the film advancingknob 103 is rotated. As a result, as the spool 114 of the film container110 is rotated in the clockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 13, theexposed film 21 is wound back into the light-tight film container 110.Therefore, when the exposure of all frames of the film 21 has beencompleted, the film is fully contained in the light-tight film container110. Consequently, the film container 110 can be removed by breaking ordisassembling the film package even in daylight.

It is to be understood that, although a 35mm-size patrone which is nowcommercially available is used in this embodiment, the light-tight filmcontainers themselves may take various forms. For instance, alight-tight film container having a film slot may be formed integrallywith the main body section 100 but may be adapted to be separatedtherefrom. Furthermore, it is not always necessary to provide thelight-tight film container with a spool. In the case of providing nospool, the exposed film may be thrust into the light-tight filmcontainer with the aid of a sprocket wheel well known per se in the artwhich is caused to rotate by a film-advancing knob.

Reference is now had to FIGS. 15 to 17 showing, by way of example, afilm loading apparatus for automatically loading a film roll and a filmpatrone into the main body section of the lens-fitted film package shownin FIGS. 1 to 3. The film loading apparatus 150 is mounted on a baseplate 152 which will be described in detail later. On the base plate 152are frames 152a and 152b as is clearly seen in FIG. 18, by which themain body section 2 and the back cover section 3 are adjusted inposition.

The film loading apparatus 150 is provided with pedestals 156 and 157supporting guide rods 154 and 155, a frame member 158 mounted on theguide rods 154 and 155 for sliding movement, and a swingable arm 160supported on a shaft 159 fixed to the movable frame 158 for verticalswinging movement. Between the swingable arm 160 and the movable frame158 is a coil spring 162 to urge the arm 160 to pivot in thecounterclockwise direction and to press it ordinarily upwardly as viewedin FIG. 16.

The movable frame 158 is ordinarily held in its preparatory position farfrom the main body section 2 by the coil spring 162 as is shown in FIGS.14 and 16. As is shown in FIG. 15, the movable frame 158 is providedwith an annular magnet 163 fixed to one end of frame 158 by means of setscrews. This magnet 163 can attract an end surface of the film patrone20 and thereby hold the film patrone 20 as is shown in FIG. 15. Themovable frame 158 is further provided with an ejecting rod 165 which ismovable axially and urged by a coil spring 166 to retract downwardly asviewed in FIG. 15. At the foremost end of the ejecting rod 165, there isa rotatable fork 165a engageable with the spool 28 of the film patrone20.

An air cylinder 169 with a gear 170 attached to its rear end isrotatably supported by the swingable arm 160 through a bearing 168. Bythe gear 170, which is prevented from moving axially, the cylinder 169is rotated to drive a spool 172 which is urged by a spring incorporatedin the cylinder 169 to protrude forwardly. When air is released from theair cylinder 169, the spool 172 is retracted from a position shown inFIG. 15 to position its forward end below the bottom surface of the mainbody section 2. When the air cylinder 169 rotates, the spool 172 andcylinder 169 are rotated.

When the swingable arm 160 moves to a position shown by a double dottedline in FIG. 16, the distance between the center lines of the spool 172and the ejecting rod 165 is equal to the distance between the centerlines of the film patrone receiving chamber 12 and the film rollreceiving chamber 11. At the tip of the spool 172, the spool is formedwith a slot 172a in which the leading portion 21a of the film 21 is heldby means of a leaf spring 173. If the leading portion 21a of the film 21is tightly wound around the spool 172 while holding it in the slot 172a,the film will be sharply curled. For preventing such a sharp curl, it isdesirable to cut off or round any sharp edges of the spool 172 adjacentto the slot 172a as is shown in FIGS. 21(A) and 21(B).

The shaft 159 which serves as a pivot for the swingable arm 160 isprovided with a ratchet 175 in engagement with the teeth of the gear 170so as to prevent the gear 175 from being rotated in the counterclockwisedirection.

The film loading apparatus thus constructed is installed along anautomatic assembly line as shown in FIGS. 19 and 20. FIG. 19 illustratesschematically the automatic assembly line and FIG. 20 shows the relativeposition of the base plate 152 and a loading station 177.

A plurality of the base plates 152, on each of which the film loadingapparatus 150 and the frames 152a and 152b are carried, and which inturn are carried as a unit by a conveyor belt 178, are advanced by theconveyor belt 178 stepwise to the right as viewed in FIG. 19 and passthrough a darkroom 180. Along the path of the conveyor belt 178, thereare provided a unit supplying station, a patrone supplying station 177,the dark room 180, and a pick-up station. In the dark room 180 arecarried out the steps of making a film roll 23 by withdrawing unexposedfilm 21 from the film patrone 20 without exposing it to light, engagingthe spool 28 of the film patrone 20 with the fork 14 by inserting thepatrone axially into the film-patrone-receiving chamber 12 of the mainbody section 2, inserting the rolled film 23 into the film rollreceiving chamber 11, removing the spool 172 from the film roll 23, andsecuring the back cover section 3 to the main body section 2.

In the unit supplying station, the main body section 2 and the backcover section 3 are manually supplied to the base plate 152. In thepatrone supplying station, a film patrone 20 with only a film leaderwithdrawn therefrom is placed in the film patrone receiving chamber 12of the main body section 2. When the conveyor 178 carries the base plate152 to the patrone supplying station 177, an arm 181 (see FIGS. 15 and17) protrudes by a predetermined distance to push the movable frame 158forwardly against the coil spring 164. As a result of the forwardmovement of the movable frame 158, the magnet 163 attracts the filmpatrone 20 in the film-patrone-receiving chamber 12.

After the attraction of the film patrone 20, the arm 181 is returned toits initial position while returning the movable frame 158 to thepreparation position shown in FIG. 15 so as to withdraw the film patrone20 partially from the film-patrone-receiving chamber 12. At this time,the fork 165a of the ejection rod 165 is brought into resilientengagement with the spool 28 of the film patrone 20 by the spring 166.When the spool 28 is slightly turned in the next station, it is ensuredthat the fork and spool engage with each other. For this engagement, thespool 28 of the film patrone 20 is given a back-tension through the fork165a when the unexposed film 21 is withdrawn from the film patrone 20.

Upon the movable frame returning to the preparation position shown inFIG. 16, a driving gear 182 in the patrone supplying station 177descends to mesh with the gear 170 of the air cylinder 169.Simultaneously, the supporting member 183 extends below a receivingportion 185 attached to the bottom of the swingable arm 160, preventingthe rotatable arm 160 from descending when the driving gear 182 mesheswith the gear 170. After the driving gear 182 has been adjustably turnedto bring the slot 172a of the spool 172 to its predetermined position,the driving gear 182 and the supporting member 183 are returned. Thenthe film leader 21a that protrudes from the film patrone 20 is manuallyinserted into the slot 172a of the spool 172 and held by the leaf spring173, and is thereby prevented from escaping.

The convertor 178 brings the film loading apparatus 150 on the baseplate 152 to the darkroom 180. Therein the film loading device 150 isoperated at a rewinding station 187 which is also provided with adriving gear and a supporting member, similar to the gear 182 and thesupporting member 183, engageable with the gear 170 of the air cylinder169. The driving gear drives the gear 170 to turn in the clockwisedirection viewed in FIG. 16. As the gear 170 turns, the spool 172 isrotated to withdraw the film 21 from the film patrone 20 and wind ittherearound. Since the film 21 is given a slight back-tension throughthe fork 165a, the spool 172 can wind the film 21 tightly therearound.The driving gear 182 is driven by a motor (not shown) disposed in therewinding station 187. Between the motor and the gear 182, there isprovided a slipping mechanism so as to import to the driving gear 182 aconstant torque. For the purpose of preventing the film patrone 20 frombeing detached from the magnet during the winding of the film 21 aroundthe spool 172, the film patrone 20 is desirably supported in anywell-known manner.

When a sufficient time has elapsed after the spool 172 has started torotate, the driven gear 182 automatically stops. Because the length ofthe film previously contained in the film patrone 20 is known, saidsufficient time is previously set according to the length of film toensure that the film 21 will be fully withdrawn from the film patrone 20at the time the spool 172 stops. In this way, the film roll 23 isformed. As the film 21 is above the main body section 2 during thewinding thereof, the film 21 is protected from getting scratches on thesurfaces thereof. Moreover, the film can be wound at a high speed. Itmay be preferable to detect the load exerted on the spool shaft 172 bymeans of the slipping mechanism, so as to stop the driving gear 182 whena load above a predetermined load is detected.

After the film roll 23 has been formed and the spool shaft 172 stops,the driving gear 182 and the supporting member 183 are returned to theirinitial positions. Then the base plate 152 moves to the next operatingstation, namely a film installing station 188. During this movement, asthe gear 170 is prevented from counterclockwise rotation by the ratchet175, the film roll 23 does not loosen due to the resiliency of the film21 itself.

At the film installing station 188, there are an arm similar to the arm181 of the film loading stage 177, a push-down rod 190 with a rollerattached to its end for pushing down the swingable arm 160 in the mannershown in FIG. 16, and a stopping rod 191 which is in contact with thegear end of the ejecting rod 165 supported by the movable frame 158 andprevents the ejecting rod 165 from returning when the movable frame 158moves rearwardly in the same manner as is shown in FIGS. 14 and 16 so asto push out the ejecting rod 165 relative to the frame 158. At the filminstalling station 188, there is an air nozzle 192 which projects and isbrought into connection with a nozzle coupler 169a at the end of the aircylinder 169 when the swingable arm 160 swings down to a position shownby double dotted lines in FIG. 16.

When the film loading device 150 is moved to the film installing station188 from the film winding station 187, the arm 181 is pushed out to movethe movable frame 158 to the loading position shown by double dottedlines in FIG. 17 from the preparation position shown in FIG. 15, so asto insert the film patrone 20 attracted by the magnet 163 into thefilm-patrone-receiving chamber 12 of the main body section 2. In thisway, the spool 28 of the film patrone 20 is smoothly brought intoengagement with the fork 14 of the main body section 2.

At this time, as the swingable arm 160 is in its lifted position, thefilm roll 23 wound around the spool shaft 172 is still disposed abovethe film-roll-receiving chamber 11. When the arm 181 is extended apredetermined distance, the movable frame 158 moves to the loadingposition, and the push-down rod 190 is caused to descend by means of,for example, a motor or an air cylinder so as to swing the swingable arm160 about the shaft 159 against the force of the spring 162.

When the swingable arm 160 reaches a position shown by double dottedlines in FIG. 16 to align horizontally the spool shaft 172 with theejecting rod 165, and hence the film roll 23 with the film patrone 20,the film roll 23 is inserted into the film-roll-receiving chamber 11from above. In this way, the film 21 is engaged with the sprocket 16projecting from the film supporting surface of the exposure frame 15from above, so as to avoid being caught by the sprocket. The anglethrough which the swingable arm 160 turns is set to be about 35 degrees.

When the push-down rod 190 descends a predetermined distance to insertthe film roll 23 into the film-roll-receiving chamber 11, the air nozzle192 (see FIG. 15) of the film installation station 188 is extended toconnect with the nozzle coupler 169a of the air cylinder 169. By suckingair from the air cylinder 169, the spool shaft 172 is graduallyretracted. As the film roll 23 is retained by the front edge 169b of theair cylinder 169 during the retraction of the spool shaft 172, the spoolshaft 172 slips out of the film roll 23 so as to allow it to fall intothe film-roll-receiving chamber 11.

After the spool shaft 172 has returned, the stopping rod 191 is causedto move so as to contact to the rear end of the ejecting rod 165. Atthis time, the arm 181 is retracted and the movable frame 158 is movedto the preparation position by the coil spring 164. As the result of themovement of the movable frame 158, the film patrone 20 is pushed out bythe ejecting rod 165 and disconnected from the magnet 163 to be left inthe film patrone receiving chamber 12.

When the movable frame 158 returns after the film patrone 20 and thefilm roll 23 have been received in the respective receiving chambers 11and 12, in the manner described above, the moved elements such as thepush-down rod 190, stopping rod 191, air nozzle 192, swingable arm 160,and the spool shaft 172 return to their initial positions to completethe film installing operation. The base plate 152 is then moved to thenext station, namely the back cover fitting station 195 in the darkroom180. Therein a manipulator is provided to place the back cover section3, which is located on the base plate 152, on the main body section 2 toform a light-tight box-shaped film package. The main body section 2fitted with the back cover section 3 is then moved to the weldingstation 196 to be subjected to an ultrasonic welding. In this way, thefilm package is completely assembled into one body, to provide alight-tight lens-fitted film package including the film patrone 20 andthe film roll 23 therein. However, it is preferable that a part 3a ofthe bottom of the back cover section 3 is left unwelded in order to makeit easy to break open the back cover 3 when the film patrone is removed.The completed lens-fitted film package on the base plate 152 istransferred by the conveyor out of the darkroom 180 to the next station,namely the pick-up station, in the daylight again, wherein the completedlens-fitted film package is picked up and subjected to inspection.

After the pick-up station, the base plate 152 whose movable frame 158 isrestored to its preparation position shown in FIG. 15 and whoseswingable arm 160 returns to its lifted position shown by a solid linein FIG. 16 is returned to the unit supplying station to load anotherunit.

Although, in the above-described embodiment, the patrone supplyingstation is provided in order to supply the film patrone 20 to the filmpatrone receiving chamber 12 of the main body section 2, the loadingstation 177 can be omitted by holding directly the film patrone by themagnet at the patrone supplying station. In this case, the adjustment ofthe initial position of the spool shaft 172 is, for example, performedat the end of the operation in the film installing station, while theleader portion of the film extending from the film patrone 20 isinserted into the slot 172a of the spool shaft 172.

In order to prevent the leader portion of the film 21 from getting animpression or mark on the slot 172a thereon when winding the film 21around the spool shaft 172, it is desirable to use a spool shaft 198shown in FIG. 21(C). The spool shaft 198 comprises a slotted shaft 200with an attached retaining spring member 201. Between the slotted spoolshaft 200 and the retaining spring member 201, the leader portion of thefilm 21 is grasped. Therefore, if the spool shaft 200 is rotated in thecounterclockwise direction, the film can be wound around the spool shaft200 and then can slip off in an axial direction. When slipping off therolled film the spool shaft 200 is deformed.

As shown in FIG. 22(A), it is also desirable to use the slotted spoolshaft 172 fitted with a resilient sleeve 203. In this case, afterinserting the film leader portion 21a into the slot 172a and holding itby the leaf spring 173, the sleeve 203 is expanded and fitted over thespool shaft 172. When removing the spool shaft 172 from the film 23rolled therearound, the rolled film 23 is left with the sleeve 203 inthe film roll receiving chamber 11. The sleeve 203 left in the film rollreceiving chamber 11 can serve as a spool for the film roll 23.

Although the present invention has been fully described by way of thepreferred embodiments thereof with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, it is to be noted that various changes and modifications willbe apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, unless otherwisesuch changes and modifications depart from the scope of the presentinvention, they should be construed as being included therein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for assembling a lens-fittedphotographic film package which comprises a light-tight casingcomprising a main body section having an exposure opening therein and aback cover section, a rolled film disposed on one side of said exposureopening, and a light-tight container disposed on the opposite side ofsaid exposure opening from said rolled film, said container having afilm winding spool to which is attached one end of said rolled film,said method comprising the steps of:winding a film withdrawn from saidlight-tight container in a roll in a darkroom; loading said film in aroll and said light-tight container from which said film was withdrawninto separate receiving chambers formed in one of said sections of saidlight-tight casing of said lens-fitted photographic film package; andfixing said back cover section to said main body section so as toassemble light-tightly said lens-fitting photographic film package.
 2. Amethod as defined in claim 1, wherein said one of said sections is saidmain body section.
 3. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein said oneof said sections is said back cover section.
 4. A method as defined inclaim 1, wherein said main body section and said back cover section arefixed together by ultrasonic welding.
 5. A method as defined in claim 1,wherein said winding comprises attaching a leading portion of said filmto a spool shaft and then winding said film around said spool shaft in aroll.
 6. A method as defined in claim 5, wherein said light-tightcontainer from which said film is withdrawn to be wound around saidspool shaft is at least partially disposed in a said receiving chamberat the time said film is withdrawn therefrom.
 7. A method as defined inclaim 6, wherein said spool shaft is removed from said film wound in aroll therearound at the end of said loading.
 8. A method as defined inclaim 1, wherein said light-tight container is a 35mm-size film patrone.9. A method for assembling a lens-fitted photographic film package whichcomprises a light-tight casing having an exposure opening, a roll ofunexposed film disposed on one side of said exposure opening, and alight-tight container disposed on the opposite side of said exposureopening from said film, said container having therein a film windingspool attached to one end of said film, said method comprising thesteps:placing said light-tight container in which the greater part ofsaid film is contained in a container-receiving chamber formed on saidopposite side of said exposure opening in a main body section of saidlight-tight casing such that a leader portion of said film withdrawnfrom said light-tight container is attached to a spool and is placedtogether with said spool in a film roll receiving chamber formed on saidone side of said exposure opening in said main body section of saidlight-tight casing; fitting a back cover section to said main bodysection so as to form said light-tight casing, one end of said spoolbeing exposed outside said light-tight casing; temporarily connectingrotational apparatus to said exposed end of said spool; winding a majorportion of the length of said film on said spool in said film rollreceiving chamber by rotating said spool by said rotational apparatus;and disconnecting said rotational apparatus from said exposed end ofsaid spool.
 10. A method as defined in claim 9, wherein said light-tightfilm container is a 35mm-size patrone.
 11. A method as defined in claim9, wherein the light-tight casing is of a type that must be destroyed toremove said container.
 12. A method as defined in claim 9, wherein saidrotational apparatus is a rotatable tool inserted within a recess insaid exposed end of said spool.
 13. A method for assembling alens-fitted photographic film package which comprises a light-tightcasing having an exposure opening, an unexposed rolled film disposed onone side of said exposure opening, and a light-tight container disposedon the opposite side of said exposure opening from said rolled film,said container having therein a film winding spool attached to one endof said rolled film, said method comprising the following steps:graspingan end of said film with a spool shaft at a time when most of said filmis rolled within said light-tight container; expanding a resilientsleeve and fitting said expanded resilient sleeve over said spool shaft;rotating said spool shaft to withdraw film from said light-tightcontainer and to wind said film about said resilient sleeve to form saidrolled film; and withdrawing said spool shaft from within said resilientsleeve.
 14. A method as described in claim 13, and providing on saidresilient sleeve a slot that extends lengthwise of said sleeve fulllength of said sleeve, and so positioning said sleeve on said spoolshaft that said film extends through said slot.